Movie Like Ghostbusters And Harry Potter Essay

A hero's place in society has remained relatively consistent since the very beginning of time. Throughout the years, people have seen many different versions of larger-than-life heroes, who have completed seemingly impossible tasks and persevered through immense adversity. The common denominator between all of these heroes has always been that each and every one of these beings has put his/her own life in danger and fought great battles in the pursuit of a better life for mankind as a whole.

A hero is universally seen as a selfless individual who puts the needs of others before themselves. Heroes usually hold the same values; honor, nobility, integrity, and strength. Now what happens when a person does not hold those heroic values? What if their motivations did not have good intentions? These are the questions that will be answered using the deconstruction critical lenses. “Today, it is much harder to detach the concept of heroism from morality; we only call heroes those whom we admire and wish to emulate.” (Lebarge web) The Greek myth of Theseus and the Minotaur has evolved into the modern trilogy of Batman which, when deconstructed, reveals how the selfish motivations of

The concept of a hero has been around for many generations, and the meaning of a hero is defined in ways people grasp its idea. A hero can be a person who has a superpower and is willing to make a personal sacrifice for the benefit of others or can be an ordinary everyday person who just wants to help people out of his or her own heart. Linda Seger’s article, “Creating the Myth,” tackles the idea of a “Hero 's Myth,” and shows the ten steps of how heroes are transformed from an ordinary person to the Savior. On the other hand, Robert B. Ray piece titled, “The Thematic Paradigm,” emphasizes that in modern films, it is either having an “Outlaw Hero or an Official Hero,” which he uses three stages to demonstrates how they are different each other in the way they perform in the society. Further, the article, “Out of Character: Wonder Woman’s Strength Is Her Compassion - What Happened?” by Stevie St. John, explains how Wonder Woman was viewed as a compassionate woman in the 1940s and 1950s, and in the 2000s she changes into a more violent person. In this essay, I argue that a hero is subjective, and is defined by the villain or event that they had to adapt to suddenly.

Linda Seger's hero myth from her publication "Creating the Myth" is very thorough in the steps involved in creating a hero of a story. All ten steps are very common to a typical hero story. However, there are some gaps in her theory. An example of a story that does not fit Seger's theory is the Disney version of the fairy tale Beauty and the Beast. This popular cultural phenomenon has within it an atypical hero, one who pokes holes in Seger's hero myth theory. This atypical hero, simply named Beast, does not fit all ten of the steps in a typical hero story.

Usually, when people think of the word ‘hero’, their mind conjures up several images of Superman, Batman, or Spiderman. Most people think of a hero as a steroid-riddled man in a tight suit and a cape, capable of flying, shooting lasers out of their eyes, or using some other kind of superhuman abilities. But a hero in a classic story is a completely different kind of archetype. Archetypal heroes are far from perfect – receiving supernatural help and making fatal flaws. A hero also embarks on an epic journey in which they face many issues, and are often honored after their death.

Scott Vollum, Cary D. Adkinson. The Portrayal of Crime and Justice in the Comic Book Superhero Mythos. College of Criminal Justice Sam Houston State University, 2003 Journal of Criminal Justice and Popular Culture, 10(2) (2003) 96-108

According to Linda Seger all myths, in all cultures are much the same. In these myths it is just the time, place and setting that changes. This is why Hollywood is so successful at making good movies, because they base it off these myths. The most popular myth is that of the hero, because for most of us this is what we want to be. With this myth we can live that experience through these characters. In the creation of a hero there are ten stages, using the Matrix as an example we will look at these ten stages.

One of the most common aspects of any type of story is a hero. A hero is characterized as a person, typically a man, who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities. Hero’s are in most cases faced with a conflict. However, no matter how difficult it may be or how many obstacles he/she may face along the road, the hero will always (almost always) rise to the occasion and come out victorious.

Literature, movies, and society all play a role in shaping our definitions of heroism, whether it’s Superman flying to the rescue of an innocent civilian or the men and women who bravely risk their lives in our military. This can make figuring out exactly what makes a hero difficult because there are many different contexts one would need to analyze. For this reason, I believe what makes a hero depends on the lense that it's being judged through: its societal context.

Present-day heroes oppose the traditional “hero’s journey” by exemplifying how the idea of a “hero” evolved throughout time; the “hero” doesn’t necessarily have to be the “good” guy yet the audience will still promote

America’s current socio-political events and values are reflected through the film industry’s portrayal of superheroes. Annika Hagley writes a very convincing argument regarding this theory in her article “America’s need for superheroes has lead to the rise of Donald Trump.” Post 9/11, it has become increasing clear that the issues and values held dear to most Americans are now being portrayed on the big screen. Fighting back at the “enemy” and uniting as one are some of the messages in the background of superhero films released after the attacks on the twin towers. Today, the USA is more divided; just like the superheroes that have been on the silver screen in recent months. In continuation, America’s allowances for overly violent superheroes and everything said superheroes stand for, are simply just reflections of their own socio-political views and values. It is this allowance that has lead to the rise of Donald Trump.

"If Hero means sincere man, why may not every one of us be a Hero?” (Thomas Carlyle). In the youth of many, comics and heroes played an important aspect in most of our lives. Growing up most children in the United States and around the world has cherished their comic books and cartoons that demonstrate their favorite heroes courage and self-sacrifice in the face of danger and adversity. Joseph Campbell, in book The Hero with a Thousand Faces, describes his idea of the monomyth. His proposal states every hero, including Bruce Wayne in Batman Begins, goes through 17 stages in their journey. By investigating the plot line of a popular superhero multi-million dollar movie, Batman Begins, we will discover the

Heroes are prevalent in everyone’s life. Whether someone’s hero is a living person or a fabled character from a movie, everybody has come into contact with some sort of hero. In fact, the concept of heroes has existed for hundreds of years, dating all the way back to Ancient Greece. Over time, heroes have drastically changed. As society has evolved, our heroes have evolved with it. Their goals and motivations have changed to coincide with the views of modern society. Modern day heroes have less selfish motives, better qualities, and are portrayed differently than ancient heroes.

There are many heroes, but there are those who sit back and question what or who makes a hero in today’s society. It has never been a set standard for heroes. In this modern world, there are many types of heroes. In today’s media, there is a contrast between million dollar sports figures, glorified celebrities, and the normal people we call heroes. Some heroes receive no recognition and others receive hero status with ease. However, it has yet to be determined whether our meaning of heroes has changed due to this influence. We have known about the

Through my analyzation of these values, I have assessed the relevance of superheroes in cinema through the impact of American popular culture, the contrast of gender roles, and their impact on children. As a result, society should be gracious toward the immense popularity of superhero films, as they bolster American popular culture and positively impact children from a young age. Although the gender roles might be a bit skewed, many film companies are taking steps to include women in more empowering roles such as Wonder Woman in the DC cinematic universe. Therefore, superheroes in cinema tend to only create and preserve positive characteristics within society, which is glorious in the future of mankind. In closing, I end with the question, “Which superhero best depicts